Africa-Press – Gambia. Former Finance Minister of the Barrow administration, Mr. Amadou Sanneh, has said his strict fiscal management policies made him unpopular within government, ultimately leading to his transfer and dismissal from the ministerial post.
Mr. Sanneh, who also serves as treasurer of the United Democratic Party (UDP), made the remarks during an interview on Coffee Time on Monday.
He said several of his reform measures, including the “Vehicle Policy”, were strongly resisted within the civil service. According to him, some Permanent Secretaries escalated their concerns to the Secretary General at the State House when he attempted to enforce the policy.
He attributed the resistance to what he described as reluctance to change entrenched and corrupt practices within the public sector.
“I think the very stringent fiscal management contributed to my loss of favour within the government,” Mr. Sanneh said. “We inherited a difficult situation in 2017, with limited resources. The budget we found was unrealistic, so we had to revise it downward and cut expenditures.”
He added that some ministers frequently pressured him to approve travel requests, noting that managing such demands was challenging but necessary to maintain fiscal discipline.
Mr. Sanneh said his tenure saw efforts to control inflation, arguing that lower import costs helped stabilize prices to some extent. He maintained that firm adherence to prudent financial policies was crucial in safeguarding the country’s economy at the time.
Reflecting on his departure from government, Mr. Sanneh said relations deteriorated when other influences began to shape the President’s decisions.
“In the end, he had his own plan, and the UDP became the enemy,” he said.
He further claimed that the President later acknowledged being advised to distance himself from the UDP in order to gain broader political support.
Mr. Sanneh defended the UDP’s record in government, stating that its members served with integrity.
“Not a single thing we took for ourselves. Our commitment and efforts were clear,” he said.
Mr. Sanneh served as Minister of Finance before being reassigned to the Ministry of Trade, after which he was dismissed from government.
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